PRONUNCIATION OF
PLACE NAMES
Page 1 - A to K
Page 2 - L - Z
In the U.K. there are
many towns and villages with strange sounding names and, in some cases,
these names are not said as they are spelled, which causes a great deal of
confusion for visitors. Now I am sure this is not only a British
phenomenon, there must be similar examples around the world, so if you
know of any please send them to me so they can be added to this page.
There will obviously also be differences with
pronunciation from area to area, as there are always many different
dialects within any country.
In the U.K. one of the most common
differences is in words like "castle" and
"grass". Some areas say a short "a" sound (as in
the word "as") whereas others say a long "aaarrr"
sound (as in the word "chart"). This means that places
like "Bath" can be said as spelled or "Barth".
An example of this can be found with "Chippenham",
which one of my newsletter subscribers kindly sent to me as being
pronounced as "Chipnam". This, I feel, is the way it is
said in the West of Britain whereas, in the South I think we are more
likely to say it as it is spelled i.e., "Chip-en-ham".
The actual pronunciation is not going to be
easy to explain but I will try to do it phonetically, it will, however,
rely on visitors knowing a little about the English language.
As an added dimension to this page I have
decided to include some links to other sites giving specific information
on the places mentioned.
For ease of operation I have
endeavoured to keep this as one page but, due to its popularity and
visitor contributions, it has now become somewhat unwieldy and,
therefore, I had split it into two.
|
Spelling |
|
Pronunciation |
|
Adelaide
|
|
AD-laid
Rachel |
|
Albany, Western Australia
|
|
Al-bany NOT All-bany.
Eric
|
|
Albany Creek (suburb of
Brisbane, Queensland)
|
|
All-bny
[it’s pronounced
this way in New Zealand as well)
Peter G Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA |
|
AL-buh-KER-kee
(If you were in the habit of naming your domestic
fowl, would rhyme with "Sal the turkey")
M. Johansson |
|
Alciston, East Sussex
|
|
Aston
Stuart
Pennington
|
|
Aldinga, South Australia
|
|
All-dinga (not Al-dinga!!!) -
see comments below
Al-dinga (not All-dinga)
Belinda
Whoops,
another difference of opinion!
Aldinga
in South Australia is DEFINITELY pronounced ALL-dinga not AL-dinga (as
in pronunciation of Alan). In fact it was a running joke in south aust
because an interstate company were advertising land for sale there and
pronounced it as 'AL-dinga' - people couldn't believe an interstate
company that wanted to sell something to locals hadn't bothered to
check the pronunciation of the place name..
Holly
Aldinga - its not a difference of opinion. All residents of Aldinga
and South Australians generally pronounce it all-dinga. Only people
outside SA who take a stab at it might pronounce al-dinga. As an
ex-resident of the area, Aldinga was a regular holiday spot and
indeed I visited there again last Christmas.
Martin Woods
|
|
Alfreton |
|
Olfreton
(although some disagree)
Ellena
Lyons |
|
Alfriston, East Sussex |
|
All-Friston
Stuart
Pennington |
|
Allerton,
Bradford, West Yorkshire |
|
Ollerton
Jeremy
Double
|
|
Alnmouth |
|
Allenmouth
Martin
Capps |
|
Alnwick
(Northumberland) |
|
Anic
Martin
Capps |
|
Alresford |
|
Alls-fid
Peter |
|
Althorp
(where Princess Diana is buried) |
|
The
village is pronounced Olthorpe but the House is pronounced Orltrop (notice the
reversal of the O and the R!)
Martin
Underwood |
|
Amlwch
- Anglesey |
|
Am-look
Andrew
Moore
|
|
Ansty,
West Sussex |
|
An-Sty
Stuart
Pennington
|
|
Ardingly
(Sussex) |
|
Ardingl-eye
Joan
Hall |
|
Arlesey |
|
Arll-Zee
Andrew
Moore |
|
Aspatria |
|
Spi'atry (by some)
Richard
Tosswill |
|
Averham,
Nottinghamshire |
|
Air-rum
Phil |
|
Aslackby, Lincolnshire |
|
Aze-ul-by
Andrew Tooms |
Barlestone, Leicestershire
|
|
Belsun (may
just be locals though)
Sian Mitchell |
|
Bamburgh
(Northumberland) |
|
Bambruff
Ben
Vizard
Bambro
Martin
Underwood |
|
Barnoldswick (Lancashire) |
|
Barlick
Mark Iliff
Barnoldswick (as spelled)
Martin Underwood
Barnoldswick is not pronounced Barlick. Barlick
is just a contraction of Barnoldswick.
Ken Ranson
|
|
Barrow-in-Furness |
|
'Furness' is pronounced to
sound like 'furnace' not 'finesse'.
Gavin
|
Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire
|
|
Barreronsor
Sian Mitchell |
|
|
|
Barrel
Sian Mitchell |
|
Basket Range, South Australia |
|
Basket
Range
(Bas - as in Cash not Barsket)
Belinda
You've written that it should be
pronounced bas as in cash not barsket. This is a very Victorian pronunciation.
In Australia, the eastern states
have a short 'a' and South Australia has a long 'ah' or 'ar' (branch, graph,
grass, dance, etc) as you've mentioned in the third paragraph at the top of the
page for England.
I live near Basket Range and some
of my friends like in Basket Range, and it's pronounced "barsket" range.
Rachel |
|
Bawburgh, Norfolk |
|
Bore-Bruh
Dominic |
|
Beaconsfield
|
|
Bekonsfield
|
|
Bearsted
|
|
Beerstid
Stephen Burgess |
|
Beaulieu |
|
Bewley
Philip
|
|
Bedworth |
|
Bedduth
Anna
Bland |
|
Belvoir |
|
Beever
Sheila Fox |
|
Berwick
on Tweed
|
|
Berik
on Tweed |
|
Bevere (village near
Worcester)
|
|
Bevvery
Andrew Brooke |
|
Bicester
|
|
Bister
Brenda Young |
|
Billesdon,
Leicestershire |
|
Billsdon
Phil |
|
Biloxi, Mississippi |
|
Bih-LUX-ee
M. Johansson |
|
Bisham near Marlow,
Bucks
|
|
Bis-Um (NOT Bish-am)
Dave Bennett |
|
Blackley,
Greater Manchester |
|
Blakely
Peter
Draggett |
|
Blidworth
(Nottinghamshire) |
|
Blidduth
John
Stolarski
Blidworth, is
NORMALLY pronounced (by the vast majority of locals) as Blid-worth.
Phil |
|
Bolsover
(Derbyshire) |
|
Baa-zer
John
Stolarski |
|
Boughton, Lincolnshire |
|
Bootun
Jed Bland |
|
Bovey Tracey, Devon |
|
Buvvy Trasey |
|
Bozeat,
Northants. |
|
BOHzhut
Mark
Wheaver |
|
Bradley near Wolverhampton
|
|
Braid-Lee
Craig Wilson |
|
Bradwell |
|
Bradl
Liza
Hicks |
|
Braughing
(Hertfordshire) |
|
Braff-ing
Janet Horton |
|
Brewood,
South Staffs near Wolverhampton |
|
Brood
Keith
Sedgley |
|
Brisbane (Australia) |
|
Brizz-bn
Peter G Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Brough, East Yorkshire |
|
Bruff |
|
Burpham, Surrey or West Sussex |
|
Ber-Fam
Stuart
Pennington |
Burton Lazars, Leicestershire
|
|
Burton
Lazzers not Laz-aars
Sian Mitchell |
|
Cairns
(Queensland) |
|
Cans
Rozzie Chapman |
|
Canberra, Australia
|
|
CAN-bra
Rachel |
|
Canowindra
(New South Wales) |
|
Ca-NOWN-dra
Rozzie Chapman |
Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia
|
|
Cassle-main
Peter G Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Chedzoy in
Somerset |
|
Chedzee
Derek Appleyard |
|
Chichester |
|
Chidistr
Paul Haden
I
personally think maybe a case of local dialect as opposed to actual
pronunciation as I think many people would still say Chichester. |
|
Chiddingly, East Sussex |
|
Chidding-Lie
Stuart
Pennington |
|
Chili, N.Y. |
|
Cheye-lye (both
syllables rhyme.)
Karen
Zethmayr |
|
Chippenham (see
comments at top of page)
|
|
Chipnam (locally)
Sent by Ann Cook
Chipenum
James Bruton |
|
Chiswick, New South Wales, Australia |
|
Chizzik
Peter G
Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Chiswick, London |
|
Chizzik |
|
Cholmondeston,
Cheshire |
|
Chumston |
|
Cholmondley |
|
Chumly
Bob Moon |
|
Chop Gate
(North Yorkshire) |
|
Chopyat
Steve Watson |
|
Cirencester |
|
As
far as I know, this is the only "-cester" name to be pronounced as
spelled: bearing in mind Gloucester, Leicester and Towcester), though I
believe an obsolete pronunciation is Siss(i)ter (with or without the I in the
centre)
Martin
Underwood
Both my father and grandfather called it "Sissiter" as mentioned earlier, while
my less "rural" mother refers to it as you spell it.
Ron Gosling |
|
Cley
(Norfolk) |
|
Cly (as
in fly)
Philip |
|
Cogenhoe |
|
Cook-no
Jacqueline
Olford & Tony White |
|
Congresbury
|
|
Congsbree
Simon
Coonsberry
|
|
Coober Pedy, South Australia |
|
Coo-buh pee-dee.
It's not Coober Peddy.
Rachel |
Costessey, Norfolk:
|
|
Coss-ee
Dominic |
|
Cowbit,
Cambridgeshire. |
|
Cubbit
Phil
|
Cranbourne (suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)
|
|
Cranb’n
Peter G Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Creswick, Victoria, Australia |
|
Crezzick
Peter G
Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Croughton,
S. Northants. |
|
Crowton (rhyming with cow) OR
Crowton (rhyming with crow)
Robert J.
Croton
|
Croxton Kerrial. Leicestershire
|
|
Crow Sun Kerry ull (bird not people)
Sian Mitchelll |
|
Cuckfield, West Sussex |
|
Cook-field
Alex Browning
Cuck-field (rhymes with
'luck')
This is one is contested a
lot locally.
Patricia Whiteside
Cuckfield is, in fact, local to
me (my children went to school there) and we have always called it
Cook-field - it seems like another one of those places where those born and
bred in a place pronounce it differently to 'incomers'. |
|
Culzean, Ayrshire, Scotland |
|
Cul-ain
Lionel Bell |
|
Daresbury (Cheshire)
|
|
Darsberry
RS
|
|
Darwen,
Lancs
|
|
Darren
Peter Draggett |
|
Derby
|
|
Darbie
Jörg Müller
|
|
Dewsbury,
West Yorkshire |
|
Jewsbry
Victor |
|
Doncaster, Victoria, Australia
|
|
Doncassta
Peter G
Gleeson, BA (Macq) |
|
Duchally
(in Auchterarder,Scotland) |
|
Duck-ley
Gayle Jones |
|
Dulwich (South London and South Australia) |
|
Dullitch
Rachel |
|
Dun Laoghaire (Nr. Dublin, Ireland)
|
|
Dunn Leery (when speaking English)
Doon Lair-uh (Irish
pronunciation - but not generally by the locals)
Rhoda Draper |
|
Dunwich (Suffolk) |
|
Dunij
Jimbo |
|
Eaglesfield |
|
Egglesfield
Richard Tosswill |
|
Earley,
Berkshire. |
|
Erlee
Hamnet
Quinn |
|
Easebourne near Midhurst in West Sussex
|
|
‘Ezbun’ ‘Ezborn’, or 'Ezbourne'
Penny Bell |
|
Edinburgh, Scotland |
|
Edinbruuh or Edinburruh |
|
Edinburgh, (suburb of Adelaide, Australia) |
|
Eddin-burruh
Peter G
Gleeson, BA (Macq)eddin-bra
Rachel |
|
Eltham, SE London |
|
El-tum
Peter
Roberts |
|
Erith, Kent |
|
Eer-ith
C. Smith |
|
Esher |
|
Eesher
Philip |
|
Etchilhampton
(near Devizes Wilts) |
|
Eyeshalton
Keith
Lewis |
|
Ewell |
|
Yoo-all
Peter |
|
Eyam
(Peak District) |
|
Eem
Martin
Capps |
|
Eyre Peninsula, South Australia
|
|
Air Peninsula
Rachel |
|
Flitwick |
|
Flitick
Gary Ware |
|
Forster,
New South Wales |
|
Foster
Belinda |
|
Fowey
(Cornwall) |
|
Foy
Andrew
Nott
Fwoy (Cornish pronunciation)
Keith
Lewis |
|
Fremantle,
Western Australia |
|
Fre-MANTel, NOT FREE-mantel
Eric |
|
Frome
|
|
Froom |
|
Furneux
Pelham (Hertfordshire) |
|
Fir-nooks pellum
Janet Horton |
|
Gallipolis, Ohio |
|
GAL-uh-puh-LEECE
Sounds like "Gal a police."
Gary
Rector |
|
Gamaliel,
Missouri |
|
Ga-mail-ya
Tyler
Pruett |
|
Gillingham,
Kent
|
|
Jillingham
|
|
Gillingham, Norfolk & Dorset |
|
Gillingham (hard sounding "g" as in
girl)
Rebecca
MacMillan
|
|
Glamis,
Angus |
|
Glarms
John Butler |
|
Gloucester
|
|
Gloster |
|
Goatacre
near Lyneham, Wilts |
|
Goadoccur
Keith
Lewis |
|
Godmanchester
(Cambs.) |
|
Gumster
(old pronunciation)
Philip
Robinson |
|
Goonoo Goonoo (New South Wales) |
|
Gunna Ga-NOO
Rozzie Chapman |
|
Gorinchem (Netherlands)
|
|
Horkem
Andrew Nott
Actually, it's CHorkem, with CH as
in the Scottish pronunciation of "loch". There's no equivalent in
English, but the Germans, Spanish and Arabs are among the people who can
pronounce this.
Ivo Bouwmans |
|
Gotham, Nottinghamshire
|
|
Goat'am
Phil |
|
Goudhurst, Kent
|
|
Gowdhurst
Stephen Burgess |
|
Greenwich
|
|
Grenich
Grinnitch
JD
|
|
Greenwith, South Australia |
|
Grenith
Belinda
|
|
Greysouthen |
|
Graysoon
Richard Tosswill
|
|
Groby |
|
Grooby
Sent in by Sheila Fox
|
|
Grosmont,
North Yorkshire |
|
Grow-mont
Peter
Draggett |
|
Grosvenor, Adelaide, South Australia |
|
Grove-ner
Rachel |
|
Guisborough |
|
Gizbrur or geezbrur
|
|
Happisburgh
(Norfolk) |
|
Hazeborough
Moray
Smith
|
|
Harewood (between Leeds and Harrogate) |
|
Harewood
- locals
Har-wood (upper class/gentry)
Martin
Underwood
|
|
Harrogate |
|
Ha-rughget
- locals
Rod Bell
|
|
Hastings, Sussex |
|
Haystings |
|
Hawick (Scottish
Borders) |
|
Hoyk
Peter
Neale
|
|
Herstmonceux |
|
Hurst-mon-soo
Ken Dryden
|
|
Hertford
(Hertfordshire) |
|
Har-fud (by
some)
Janet Horton
|
|
Heather |
|
Heether
Sent in by Sheila Fox
|
|
Hele Bay, Devon |
|
Heel Bay |
|
Hellingly |
|
Hellingl-eye
Joan Hall
|
|
Hessle |
|
Hezzle
Philip
|
|
Heysham,
Nr. Morecambe |
|
Hee-Shum
or Hee-Sham
Andrew
Moore
|
|
Highams Park (NE London)
|
|
Himes PAHk
Gary Taylor |
|
Hoddesdon
(Hertfordshire) |
|
Hods-dun
Janet Horton
|
|
Holborn,
Central London |
|
Hoe-burn
Claire
Wright
|
|
Holme,
Nottinghamshire |
|
Home
Phil
|
|
Horsted
Keynes |
|
Horsted
Canes
Faye
Davies
|
|
Houghton,
Cambridgeshire
Tony
points out there are several Houghtons in the UK, and several
pronunciations. |
|
Hoe-t’n
although
to outsider ears the locals seem to pronounce it more as “Hoot’n”
Tony
Chabot
|
|
Houghton,
Leicestershire |
|
Hoeton
Jed Bland |
|
Hunstanton
(Norfolk) |
|
Hunston
Keith
Lewis
|
|
Idridgehay, Derbyshire |
|
Eye-drij-hay
It's great hearing people stumble over this
one. When pronounced more
locally the emphasis of the H disappears and it becomes 'eye dri jay'.
Les Kirk |
|
Ightham
|
|
I-tem (Eye-tem)
Ken Dryden
|
|
Keadby
|
|
Kidbee
Contributed by Eric Bishop
|
|
Kedleston, Derbyshire
|
|
Ked-less-tun
Jed Bland |
|
Keighley
(Yorkshire) |
|
Keethley
Jimbo
|
|
Keswick,
Cumbria,
England
(information)
Keswick, South Australia |
|
Kezik
Rachel |
|
Kettering
(Northamptonshire) |
|
Ke'-rin
Apostrophe indicated glottal stop*
John
Stolarski |
|
Keynsham
|
|
Kaneshum
|
|
Kirdford |
|
Curd-FORD Paul Haden
I feel that the spelling used
(Curd-ford) to indicated the pronunciation of Kirdford (W Sussex) doesn't
make clear where the accent falls.
It falls on the second syllable, thus: KirdFORD, in the same way as
Chandler's FORD or Model T FORD.
I've heard foreigners and incomers accent the first syllable, as rightly
occurs in BEDford and STANford, but this pattern should not be imposed on
KirdFORD.
Ian Thompson |
* A
glottal stop is a speech sound articulated by a momentary, complete closing
of the glottis in the back of the throat. Glottal stops occur in many
languages and usually pattern as consonants.
A
BIT OF FUN AND OTHER INTERESTING SNIPPETS
The name "Devon" for the river in Nottinghamshire is not synonymous
in pronunciation with the county in Western England. The Nottinghamshire
river's name is pronounced "Deevon". Candida Lycett Green says so in her
book "Unwrecked
England".
William Sitwell
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